Trailer landing gear

ABSTRACT

A landing gear assembly for a semitrailer includes a pair of legs that may be simultaneously raised or lowered by turning a single crank. Each of the legs is configured to be able to be mounted in either an inboard or outboard configuration. This is achieved by providing both sides of each leg with no protrusions that extend beyond the space provided in the mounting bracket and the mounting hole used to connect the landing gear to the semitrailer. The gear assembly of the landing gear includes a unique floor base that receives and supports the input shaft. A cover is used to support the input ends of the input shaft and the output shaft. The cover is connected to the input side of the upper tube of the leg and allows the gear assembly to be easily assembled within the perimeter of the upper leg.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

[0001] This application is a divisional application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/491,425, filed Jan. 26, 2000.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Technical Field

[0003] This invention generally relates to semitrailer landing gear and,more particularly, to a landing gear assembly that can be mounted in aninboard or outboard configuration. Specifically, the present inventionrelates to a single reduction landing gear assembly including a housinghaving an outer perimeter that fits within the standard mounting bracketfor a tractor trailer thus enabling an inboard or outboard mountingconfiguration. The landing gear also has an improved gear assembly.

[0004] 2. Background Information

[0005] Tractor trailers are a predominant means of transporting goodsthroughout the world. Trailers are popular because goods do not have tobe loaded and reloaded as trailers can deliver directly to the cargo bayof the destination. Trailers also can be detached from a tractor andpulled by another tractor allowing goods to be transported in a trailerwithout driver downtime. A driver thus can drop off a loaded trailer forunloading and pick up a loaded trailer that is ready to ship.

[0006] Trailer landing gear supports the front of a trailer when thetrailer is detached from a tractor. Trailer landing gear typicallyincludes a pair of laterally-spaced, gear-driven telescopic legs mountedon the front end of the semitrailer. The gear boxes of each leg arelinked by a shaft allowing a single crank to be used to raise or lowerboth legs simultaneously.

[0007] The following description of the use of two-speed landing gear isprovided as general background information. A typical scenario beginswith the operator of a truck tractor dropping off the semitrailer at alocation such as a dock for loading or unloading of the semitrailer.This semitrailer is retrieved when loading or unloading is completed,often by another tractor. When disconnecting after positioning thesemitrailer in the desired location, the truck operator manually turns acrank handle to extend the legs of the landing gear until the legsengage the ground. The operator typically uses the high gear or highspeed of the two-speed gear assembly to quickly extend the landing gearlegs from the retracted position to the extended position where the legscontact the ground. It should be noted that when the landing gearassembly is engaged in high gear, quick traversal of a vertical distanceis accomplished due to the low ratio of crank handle turns to inches ofvertical leg travel distance afforded by the high gear, which ratiousually is from about 2 to about 5 depending on the unit being utilized.The tradeoff for such a low ratio achieved in high gear is a lowermechanical advantage than the mechanical advantage that can be achievedin a lower gear. In practical terms, this means that the truck operatorcannot raise or lower a load in high gear. In low gear the ratio ofcrank handle turns to distance traveled is higher, usually from about 15to about 50, but a higher mechanical advantage is enjoyed. The highmechanical advantage enables the truck operator to raise or lower loadsin low gear that could not be moved in high gear, albeit at a slowerpace than if such loads could be moved in high gear. In order to pullthe truck tractor away from the stationary semitrailer, the operatormust disengage the depending kingpin of the semitrailer from the fifthwheel of the truck tractor by disengaging the fifth wheel jaws. Sincethe tractor is spring-biased in an upward direction, it is desirable toraise the semitrailer to relieve some of the load allowing the tractorto pull away from the semitrailer more easily. The operator maytherefore shift the gear assembly to low gear in order to further extendthe landing gear legs and raise all or part of the load of thesemitrailer from the fifth wheel. After releasing the movable jaws ofthe fifth wheel, the tractor is disengaged from the semitrailer.

[0008] When an operator picks up a semitrailer that has been loaded orunloaded, he must back the truck tractor fifth wheel under thesemitrailer and engage the kingpin. If the semitrailer was resting on astable surface such as concrete, and a similar tractor is utilized, thenecessary clearance to allow coupling most likely still exists betweenthe ground and the kingpin, and the operator merely will back the trucktractor under the semitrailer engaging the kingpin. The operator willshift the landing gear into low gear to lower the load onto the tractor,then shift into high gear and quickly retract the legs to provideclearance for vehicle operation. More particularly, the legs arepositioned approximately one foot off of the ground to provide clearancefor over-the-road travel. However, if the semitrailer was left on arelatively unstable surface such as soft ground or blacktop, thesemitrailer legs sometimes sink into the ground under the load of thetrailer between the drop off and pickup times. If this is the case, orif a higher tractor is employed, the operator must further extend thelegs to raise the trailer to provide sufficient clearance between theground and the kingpin. This requires the operator to shift the landinggear into low gear to gain mechanical advantage to raise the trailer.After coupling to the tractor and lowering the trailer load onto thetractor using low gear, the operator then will proceed as descried aboveto retract the legs in high gear to position the legs for over-the-roadtravel. This process is common to essentially all types of landinggears.

[0009] Landing gear legs are mounted in both inboard and outboardconfigurations. The choice of mounting arrangement depends on the typeof trailer, the type of landing gear, and the manufacturer. One of theproblems with existing semitrailer landing gear is that the gear box orgear housing located at the top of the telescoping legs prevents oneside of the landing gear from being mounted on the trailer frame. Theprotruding gear box thus provides only one available mounting surface onthe landing gear. Such landing gear can only be mounted on one side ofthe frame member of the trailer thus requiring the landing gearmanufacturer to provide both inboard and outboard configurations.Trailer manufacturers thus desire a landing gear that may be mounted inthe inboard or outboard configuration.

[0010] Another problem with existing gear box assemblies is that theshaft location of the gear box assemblies does not allow the landinggears to be switched between inboard and outboard mounting. Landinggears are mounted with a standard hole pattern having a pentagon-shapedcentral opening surrounded by a plurality of bolt holes. Existingoutboard landing gears are designed to position the inner connectingshaft within the central opening. Inboard landing gear positions theinput crank shaft within this opening so that the crank can be easilyaccessed by the user at the outside of the trailer. The art desires alanding gear assembly that locates the crank shaft in a manner thatallows the crank shaft of the landing gear to be mounted on the inboardside of the trailer frame.

[0011] Another problem in the art is that the gear assembly used toraise and lower the legs of the landing gear must be able to be easilyassembled. Assembling the gear assembly inside the legs of the landinggear can be especially difficult given the limited volume within whichto work. The art thus desires any gear assembly for a landing gear to beable to be assembled without extraordinary efforts. The art also desiresthat the gear assembly does not take away from the strength of the legsof the landing gear. It is desired to provide a gear assembly thatstrengthens the landing gear.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0012] In view of the foregoing, it is an objective of the presentinvention to provide a landing gear assembly that may be mounted ineither an inboard or outboard configuration.

[0013] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear assembly that may be mounted on either an inboard oroutboard mounting configuration with the standard hole pattern used tomount existing landing gear.

[0014] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear that may be mounted in an inboard or outboard mountingconfiguration while using the standard mounting bracket used to mountexisting landing gear.

[0015] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear having an internal gear assembly that may be easilyassembled within the interior of one leg of the landing gear.

[0016] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear assembly having a cover that holds the ends of the gearshafts when the landing gear is assembled.

[0017] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear assembly wherein one wall of a leg of the landing gearassembly includes an elongated slot that allows the gear assembly to beeasily assembled inside the leg.

[0018] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear assembly having a gear assembly that receives the inner endof the input shaft and other gear members directly to the upper tube ofthe leg.

[0019] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear assembly having a compact gear assembly that is strongerthan prior art assemblies.

[0020] Another objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear assembly having a tube and nut configuration thatstrengthens the landing gear when the landing gear is in an extendedposition.

[0021] A further objective of the present invention is to provide alanding gear that is of simple construction, that achieves the statedobjectives in a simple, effective, and inexpensive manner, that solvesthe problems and that satisfies the needs existing in the art.

[0022] These and other objectives and advantages are obtained by theimproved landing gear of the present invention, the general nature ofwhich may be stated as the combination of a leg for a landing gearassembly for a semitrailer; a mounting bracket; and a mounting surfaceon a semitrailer; the mounting surface of the semitrailer having a mainmounting hole; the leg having a lower tube being telescopically receivedin an upper tube, the upper tube having a perimeter; the mountingbracket having a pair of substantially coplanar flanges and a seat; theseat being offset from the flanges by a space; the seat of the mountingflange being connected to the upper tube; and a gear assembly disposedentirely within the perimeter of the upper tube, the space between theseat and the flanges, and the main hole of the mounting surface so thatthe leg may be mounted in an inboard or outboard configuration.

[0023] Other objectives and disadvantages of the invention are achievedby a leg for a semitrailer landing gear, the leg including an upper tubeand a lower tube, the lower tube being telescopically received in theupper tube; and input shaft; a gear assembly disposed in the upper tube,the gear assembly connected to the input shaft; the gear assemblycapable of raising and lowering the lower tube with respect to the uppertube in response to rotation of the input shaft; a floor base connectedto the upper tube; the floor base having a bore; and at least a portionof the input shaft being received in the bore.

[0024] Still other objectives and advantages of the invention areachieved by a leg for a semitrailer landing gear, the leg including anupper tube and a lower tube, the lower tube being telescopicallyreceived in the upper tube; an input shaft; a gear assembly disposed inthe upper tube, the gear assembly connected to the input shaft; the gearassembly capable of raising and lowering the lower tube with respect tothe upper tube in response to rotation of the input shaft; and a coverconnected to the upper tube, the cover supporting at least a portion ofthe input shaft.

[0025] Further objectives and disadvantages of the invention areachieved by a leg for a semitrailer landing gear, the leg including anupper tube and a lower tube, the lower tube being telescopicallyreceived in the upper tube; an input shaft; an output shaft; a gearassembly disposed in the upper tube, the gear assembly connected to theinput shaft and the output shaft; the gear assembly capable of raisingand lowering the lower tube with respect to the upper tube in responseto rotation of the input shaft, and a cover connected to the upper tube,the cover supporting at least a portion of the output shaft.

[0026] Still further objectives and advantages of the invention areachieved by

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] The preferred embodiments of the invention, illustrative of thebest mode in which applicant contemplated applying the principles of theinvention, are set forth in the following description and are shown inthe drawings and are particularly and distinctly pointed out and setforth in the appended Claims.

[0028]FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a semitrailer with thelanding gear of the present invention mounted in an outboardconfiguration;

[0029]FIG. 2 is an end view of a landing gear assembly mounted in anoutboard configuration;

[0030]FIG. 2A is a front view of the mounting hole in a channel asviewed along line 2A-2A in FIG. 2;

[0031]FIG. 3 is an end view of a landing gear assembly mounted in aninboard configuration;

[0032]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a single leg of a landing gearassembly made in accordance with the concepts of the present invention;

[0033]FIG. 4A is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of theupper leg position;

[0034]FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the landing gear in the low gearsetting;

[0035]FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the landing gear in the neutral gearsetting;

[0036]FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the landing gear in the high gearsetting;

[0037]FIG. 8 is a top view of the drive leg of a landing gear assemblyin an outboard configuration; and

[0038]FIG. 9 is a top view of the drive leg of the landing gear assemblyin an inboard configuration.

[0039] Similar numbers refer to similar parts throughout thespecification.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0040] The landing gear of the present invention is indicated generallyby the numeral 10 in the accompanying drawings. Landing gear 10generally includes a pair of vertically extendable and retractablesupports in the form of upright, spaced, parallel and opposite side legs12 and 14 that are connected to the front end of a semitrailer 16. Inthe embodiment shown in the drawings, cranking leg 12 is disposed on theleft or driver's side of semitrailer 16. Cranking leg 12 may also bedisposed on the right side of semitrailer 16 if desired.

[0041] Each leg 12 and 14 includes a lower tube 18 telescopicallydisposed within an upper tube 20. A foot 22 is connected to the lowerend of each lower tube 18 in a conventional manner.

[0042] Semitrailer 16 includes a pair of spaced apart, longitudinallydisposed channels 30. Landing gear 10 is mounted to channels 30 ineither an inboard configuration as depicted in FIGS. 3 and 8 or anoutboard configuration as depicted in FIGS. 1, 2, and 9. In accordancewith one of the objectives of the present invention, landing gear 10 andeach leg 12 and 14 of landing gear 10 is configured to be mountable ineither in inboard or outboard configurations with a standard mountingbracket 32 used with the standard mounting hole configuration depictedin FIG. 2A. Standard mounting hole configuration 34 includes a centrallydisposed main hole 36 and a set of bolt holes 38 disposed on either sideof main hole 36. Each set of bolt holes 38 includes five verticallyaligned, evenly spaced holes. In accordance with one of the objectivesof the present invention, landing gear 10 may be mounted to anysemitrailer 16 having mounting hole configuration 34. In the embodimentof the invention depicted in the drawings, mounting hole configuration34 is formed directly in channels 30. In other embodiments, mountingholes 34 may be formed in support flanges or other structural membersextending from or connected to semitrailer 16.

[0043] Mounting brackets 32 are connected to semitrailer 10 with aplurality of bolts 40. Upper tubes 20 of landing gear 10 are connectedto mounting brackets 32 by welds 42. As may be perhaps best seen inFIGS. 8 and 9, mounting bracket 32 includes two substantially coplanarflanges 44 and a seat 46 that receives upper tube 20. Seat 46 is spacedfrom flanges 44 to create a space 48 as indicated by the dimension line50. Space 48 is typically three-eights of an inch but may be otherdimensions without departing from the concepts of the present invention.Space 48 accommodates protrusions from upper tube 20 that would otherengage channel 30 and prevent upper tube 20 from being securely mountedto channel 30. In accordance with one of the objectives of the presentinvention, landing gear 10 uses space 48 and main hole configuration 36of mounting hole 34 to accommodate various elements of landing gear 10so that landing gear 10 may be mounted in either the inboard or outboardconfiguration. Landing gear 10 thus achieves one of the objectives ofthe present invention by having no elements that extend beyond space 48except those elements that extend through main hole 36 of mounting hole34. This configuration allows either side of upper tube 20 to be mountedwith mounting bracket 32 to channel 30.

[0044] Landing gear 10 further includes an input crank handle 60attached to an input shaft 62. Input shaft 62 transfers force from crankhandle 60 into a gear assembly 64 that, in turn, transfers the force toan output shaft 66 and a vertical elevating shaft 68. Vertical elevatingshaft 68 is used to move lower tube 18 as will be described in moredetail below. Output shaft 66 transfers the force to a connecting shaft70 that transfers the force across semitrailer 16 to leg 14 of landinggear 10. Connecting shaft 70 is connected to shaft 72 of leg 14. Thisinterconnection of elements allows the user of landing gear 10 tosimultaneously raise or lower legs 12 and 14 by turning crank 60.

[0045] Gear assembly 64 is depicted in FIGS. 5, 6, and 7 in the lowgear, neutral gear, and high gear position respectively. In the low gearposition depicted in FIG. 5, input shaft 62 directly drives a piniongear 80 against an intermediate gear 82. Pinion gear 80 hassubstantially few teeth than intermediate gear 82 and pinion gear 80 hasa substantially smaller diameter than intermediate gear 82. As such,multiple turns of pinion gear 80 are required to turn intermediate gear82 a single rotation. In the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, pinion gear 80 includes an X teeth with intermediate gear 82including X teeth. Intermediate gear 82 is part of a combination gear 84that includes intermediate gear 82, a bevel pinion gear 86 and a secondpinion gear 88. Intermediate gear 82, bevel pinion gear 86, and secondpinion gear 88 may be preferably fabricated as an integral element withoutput shaft 66 or may be fabricated as an integral element that islater connected to output shaft 66. In other embodiments, gears 82, 86,and 88 may be separately fabricated and later connected to output shaft66.

[0046] Bevel pinion gear 86 rotates with intermediate gear 82 andengages bevel gear 90 causing vertical elevating shaft 68 to rotate.Bevel gear 90 may be connected to vertical elevating shaft 68 by any ofa variety of know methods. A pin 92 preferably connects bevel gear 90 toshaft 68. Shaft 68 passes through a floor base 100, a bearing block 102,and an annular collar 104. Annular collar 104 rests on a shoulder formedon shaft 68. Shaft 68 then threadably engages a nut 106 that abuts theupper end of lower leg tube 18. Rotation of shaft 68 causes not 106 tomove up and down with respect to shaft 68 thus causing lower leg 18 tomove up and down with respect to upper tube 20.

[0047] A neutral position is depicted in FIG. 6. In this position,pinion gear 80 is moved out of engagement with intermediate gear 82 bymoving input shaft 62 in the direction of arrow 110. A detent spring 112forces detent balls 114 into detents 116 in the low gear position. Theforce pulling input shaft 62 in direction 110 compresses spring 112allowing balls 114 to move out of detents 116. Shaft 62 moves smoothlyoutwardly until spring 112 snaps balls 114 into detents 118. Detents 118are positioned to cause pinion gear 80 to be freely disposed betweenintermediate gear 82 and the inwardly facing teeth 120 of a transfergear 122. In this position, input shaft 62 may rotate freely withoutcausing gears 82 or 122 to rotate.

[0048] The high gear position is achieved by moving shaft 62 fartheroutwardly as indicated by arrow 124 in FIG. 7. This motion compressesspring 112 allowing balls 114 to move from detent 118 into detent 126for the high gear position. Detents 126 are positioned to cause piniongear 80 to engage teeth 120 of transfer gear 122. Transfer gear 122includes outwardly facing teeth 128 that engage second pinion gear 88.In this position, rotation of shaft 62 causes pinion gear 80 to drivetransfer gear 122. Rotation of transfer gear 122 drives second piniongear 88 of combination gear 84. Rotation of combination gear 84 causesbevel pinion gear 86 to drive bevel gear 90. Transfer gear 122 rotatesat the same rate as input shaft 62 and has substantially more teeth anda substantially larger diameter than second pinon gear 88. A singlerotation of shaft 62 thus creates multiple rotations in second piniongear 88. In the preferred embodiment, transfer gear 122 includes Xoutwardly facing teeth 128 while second pinion gear 88 includes X teeth.

[0049] In accordance with one of the objectives of the presentinvention, gear assembly 64 is housed substantially within the perimeterof upper tube 20 with only limited elements extending outside theperimeter of upper tube 20. These elements, depicted on the right handside of upper tube 20 in FIGS. 5-7, do not extend beyond space 48 exceptfor those elements that extend into main hole 36 of mounting holeconfiguration 34. This configuration allows landing gear 10 to bemounted in an inboard configuration or an outboard configuration.

[0050] The inner end 140 of input shaft 62 is rotatingly and slidablysupported by floor base 100. Floor base 100 includes a bore 142 on theinput side of floor base 100 to receive inner end 140. Inner end 140 isslidably received in bore 142 to allow shaft 62 to be moved between thelow gear, neutral, and high gear positions. Floor base 110 includes anupwardly and outwardly extending arm 144 that is connected to the innersurface of upper tube 20 at its outer end 146. Outer end 146 ispreferably welded to the inner surface of upper tube 20. In accordancewith one of the objectives of the present invention, arm 144 extendsupwardly from the longitudinal axis of input shaft 62 such that theconnection of floor base 100 to upward tube 20 is substantially aboveinput shaft 62. The configuration of arm 144 of floor base 100 leaves aspace 148 where an arm 150 of nut 106 may extend up above thelongitudinal axis of input shaft 62. The upper end 152 of arm 150 restson top of the upper end of lower tube 18. In accordance with one of theobjectives of the present invention, the connection between upper end152 and lower tube 18 on the output side of leg 12 is higher than theconnection between lower end 154 of nut 106 and lower tube 18 on theinput side. The intermediate portion of nut 106 is disposed atsubstantially the same height as the output side. In the preferredembodiment, the upper connection is disposed slightly higher than thelongitudinal axis of input shaft 62. This nut configuration increasesthe strength of leg 12 in the extended position because it allows moreof upper tuber 20 to overlap with lower tube 18. The increased overlaphelps prevent leg 12 from buckling.

[0051] In accordance with another objective of the present invention,upper end 152 of nut 106 directly contacts floor base 100 when nut 106is at the top of the threaded portion of shaft 68 (when lower tube 18 isin the fully retracted position). This connection allows force to betransferred directly from lower tube 18 through nut 106 and floor base100 to upper tube 20.

[0052] In accordance with another of the objectives of the presentinvention, a shield 160 is connected to floor base 100 on the input sideof leg 12 to prevent the grease packed around gear assembly 64 fromfalling down onto nut 106. Shield 160 extends around transfer gear 122,under the low gear position of pinion gear 80, and snap fits (or isotherwise connected to) the input side of floor base 100 around theconnection of shaft 62 with floor base 100. In one embodiment of theinvention, shield 160 includes a substantially U-shaped inner end thatsnaps around the outside of floor base 100. The lowermost portion 162 ofthe U-shaped end may be seen in FIGS. 5-7. Shield 160 may be preferablyfabricated from a plastic but other materials will function withoutdeparting from the concepts of the present invention.

[0053] In accordance with another objective of the present invention, acover 170 is connected to the input side of upper tube 20. Cover 170supports shafts 62 and 66 with respect to the input side of upper tube20 and allows landing gear leg 12 to be easily assembled. Cover 170 isconnected to the outer surface of upper tube 20 by a plurality of screws172. It is preferred that no portion of screws 172 extends into theinside of upper tube 20 so as not to interfere with the gears of gearassembly 64. In other embodiments of the invention, cover 170 may bewelded, riveted, snap-fit, press-fit, or connected by any of a varietyof other connection methods to upper tube 20. Cover 170 includes a firstsleeve 174 that receives input shaft 62 and a second sleeve 176 thatreceives output shaft 66. More specifically, a first bushing 178 isdisposed between first sleeve 174 and input shaft 62. Bushing 178includes detents 116, 118, and 126. First bushing 178 further includesan outwardly facing shoulder 180 that engages an inwardly facingshoulder 182 formed on the inside surface of first sleeve 174. Shoulder180 and 182 prevent bushing 178 from being pulled from sleeve 174 whenshaft 62 is moved between the different gear positions. The inner end184 of bushing 178 is disposed between sleeve 174 and transfer gear 122.The inner end 186 of sleeve 174 or the inner end of bushing 178 abutstransfer gear 122 and prevents transfer gear 122 from engaging the innersurface of upper tube 20. Sleeve 174 may be integrally fabricated withcover 170 or may be fabricated separately and connected to cover 170 ata later time.

[0054] A second bushing 190 is disposed between second sleeve 176 andoutput shaft 66. Bushing 190 rotatably supports shaft 66 and properlypositions second pinion gear 88 with respect to transfer gear 122. Athird bushing 192 supports the output side of output shaft 66 withrespect to upper tube 20.

[0055] In accordance with one of the objectives of the presentinvention, second sleeve 176 is entirely disposed within space 48 asdepicted in FIG. 8 when the input side of leg 12 is used as the mountingside. In this position, first sleeve 174 is disposed within main hole 36of mounting hole 34. Shaft 62 and 66 are spaced vertically at such adistance so that each may be fit within main hole 36 when leg 12 ismounted in either the inboard or outboard configuration. Thus, in FIG.9, output shaft 64 passes through main hole 36 and cover 170 faces awayfrom channel 30.

[0056] In order to ease the process of assembling gear assembly 64within leg 12, the upper end of upper tube 20 may be optionally providedwith a slot 198 (FIG. 4A) that extends from the upper edge 200 down tothe lower edge of the hole that receives bushing 190. Slot 198 allowsinput shaft 66 and combination gear 84 to be first slid through the holein upper tube 20 that receives bushing 192 and then pivoted down intoupper tube 20 with the input side of output shaft 66 passing throughslot 198. When slot 198 is used, cover 170 is used to close slot 198 andmaintain the structural integrity of the top of upper tube 20.

[0057] A cap 204 is used to close the upper end of upper tube 20. Cap204 may be fabricated separate or integrally with cover 170.

[0058] Accordingly, the improved trailer landing gear apparatus issimplified, provides an effective, safe, inexpensive, and efficientdevice which achieves all the enumerated objectives, provides foreliminating difficulties encountered with prior devices, and solvesproblems and obtains new results in the art.

[0059] In the foregoing description, certain terms have been used forbrevity, clearness, and understanding, but no unnecessary limitationsare to be implied therefrom beyond the requirement of the prior art,because such terms are used for descriptive purposes and are intended tobe broadly construed.

[0060] Moreover, the description and illustration of the invention is byway of example, and the scope of the invention is not limited to theexact details shown or described.

[0061] Having now described the features, discoveries, and principles ofthe invention, the manner in which the trailer landing gear isconstructed and used, the characteristics of the construction, and theadvantageous new and useful results obtained; the new and usefulstructures, devices, elements, arrangements, parts, and combinations areset forth in the appended claims.

1. In combination: a leg for a landing gear assembly for a semitrailer,a mounting bracket, and a mounting surface on a semitrailer; themounting surface of the semitrailer having a main mounting hole; the leghaving a lower tube being telescopically received in an upper tube, theupper tube having a perimeter; the mounting bracket having a pair ofsubstantially coplanar flanges and a seat; the seat being offset fromthe flanges by a space; the seat of the mounting flange being connectedto the upper tube; and a gear assembly disposed entirely within theperimeter of the upper tube, the space between the seat and the flanges,and the main hole of the mounting surface so that the leg may be mountedin an inboard or outboard configuration.
 2. The combination of claim 1 ,further comprising an input shaft and a floor base; the floor base beingconnected to the upper tube; and at least a portion of the input shaftbeing supported by the floor base.
 3. The combination of claim 2 ,further comprising a nut connecting the gear assembly to the lower tube.4. The combination of claim 3 , wherein the nut and the lower tube areconnected at a location above the connection between the input shaft andthe floor base.
 5. The combination of claim 1 , further comprising acover connected to the upper tube; the cover positioning at least aportion of the gear assembly.
 6. The combination of claim 5 , whereinthe cover includes a first sleeve; a portion of the input shaft beingsupported by the first sleeve.
 7. The combination of claim 6 , furthercomprising a first bushing disposed between the input shaft and thefirst sleeve.
 8. The combination of claim 7 , wherein the first sleeveengages the gear assembly to position a portion of the gear assembly ina position spaced from the inner surface of the upper tube.
 9. Thecombination of claim 1 , wherein the gear assembly includes acombination gear a bevel gear; the combination gear being disposedentirely within the perimeter of the upper leg; and the input shaftbeing disposed below the bevel gear.
 10. The combination of claim 9 ,further comprising a nut that operatively connects the gear assembly tothe lower tube; the input shaft being disposed between the bevel gearand the nut.
 11. The combination of claim 1 , further comprising aninput shaft operatively connected to the gear assembly; the input shaftdisposed in the main mounting hole.
 12. The combination of claim 1 ,further comprising an output shaft operatively connected to the gearassembly; the output shaft disposed in the main mounting hole.